Wilkins on philosophy of science 12 Aug 2014 As part of the Science Week activities that informed the last few posts, I will be giving a brief introduction to philosophy of science as well as talking about the relation between science and religion shortly. The organiser of this event (on 23 August, at the East Melbourne Unitarian Church) is Adam Ford, who interviewed me for a few hours in freezing cold but picturesque surroundings in the Melbourne Royal Botanical Gardens last Sunday (it rained, which is why I’m wearing a waterproof coat. I’m not trying to look outdoorsy). Here is the first of these pieces as Adam edits them and puts them up on Youtube: More to come unless the decency police object to an old Australian… Biology Ecology and Biodiversity Evolution Genetics Philosophy Science Systematics
Epistemology Pattern recognition: neither deduction nor induction 27 Jan 201328 Jan 2013 It occurs to me as I read Rosenberg’s Philosophy of Science (2005), that we tend in that field to classify epistemic activities into two kinds: induction (about which we have many arguments as to its warrantability) and deduction (with many arguments about its applicability). But I believe there is something else that… Read More
Evolution The heat of religion 14 Aug 2008 It’s always a Bad Idea to critique a paper on the basis of summaries, but I just can’t seem to make Proceedings of the Royal Society let me download this article. Randy Thornhill and Corey Fincher have proposed another explanation for religion, based on the correlation between tropics and diseases,… Read More
Evolution Congrats, and stuff 23 May 2008 One of my two favourite ethicists has just got tenure. Now she can say what she really thinks. [I don’t know who started the canard that ethicists are unethical. The two I know are very ethical indeed. Probably a decision theorist.] Language Log gives voice to the oft-repeated but (so… Read More
So you have a number of quivers in your bone? LOL Sorry for the pun, really like the format. Keep going.